It all depends on what you are looking for.
Someone with high, repeatable technical ability? It's got to be a test pilot with years of training and thousands of hours.
High skill and big balls? Military or maybe SAR. These guys (and gals) know that any day or night they can be called to fly to the extreme limit and have the judgement and guts to say no, when to carry on would put their own machine at unacceptable risk.
And then there are the guys out there that just once in their life get put in a position where they choose to, or have to perform with exceptional skill and get it right. Just for that one hour or day they are the best because they answer the call.
In the last category I would nominate Stuart Gregg for his rescue of the crew from a sinking rig back in 1988. He and his co- got HAI recognition in 1989 and more recently from BALPA. I can't find the citations but perhaps someone who does have access can remind us of the details.
OA